The trunk, boot or dickie of an automobile or car is the vehicle's main storage compartment. The trunk is most often located at the rear of the vehicle, as storage areas are normally at the end of the vehicle opposite to which the engine is located. Although most cars have the trunk in the rear, some cars have it in the front depending on the location of the engine.
One problem associated with a trunk and the storage of items like boxes in the trunk, is movement of the items or boxes during use of the vehicle. Because of the nature of a car, as it is intended to be driven, forces like acceleration, deceleration, and centrifugal forces are regularly acting on the vehicle and the items inside the trunk. These forces can cause the items in the trunk, like boxes, to shift around during movement of the car. This may be undesired as it can not only cause damage to the box or items inside the box, especially fragile items, but it may also cause damage to the interior of the trunk. As such, it may be desirable to restrain the items or boxes from moving or shifting around in the trunk during operation of the vehicle.
One solution to this problem, especially in open trunks like on station wagons or hatchbacks, is metal grids or guards to retain loose items in case of collision, or to simply create a bulkhead between the load in the trunk separated from the otherwise unprotected passenger space. However, this solution is typically permanent, takes up a lot of space and does not prevent the items from shifting or moving within the grids or guards.
Another solution for items that need to be restrained is the load space barrier or cargo net. These nets may be directly attached to the body structure where the net may confine luggage to the load space during movement of the vehicle. These nets have an advantage over metal guards in that they can be rolled-up when not in use, taking up much less space than a comparable guard. However, these types of barrier or cargo nets are easily tangled, do not accommodate large objects, and are typically not very durable.
Unrelated to box constraint, often time motorists carry other objects in the trunk of their car for emergency situations. During emergency situations, vehicles and motorists are often faced with pulling over on the side of the road and fixing the vehicle, waiting for help, and/or abandoning the vehicle. Being with a vehicle on the side of the road is obviously a dangerous situation. As such, some motorists carry in their trunk devices used to warn passing vehicles of the broken down or abandoned vehicle, and/or motorists on the side of the road. These devices stored in the trunk of the car may include flares, emergency cones/displays, etc. However, one problem with these devices may be that they are rarely used and constantly take up space when not in use. As such, because of desired trunk space and/or the infrequency of emergency situations, some motorists choose not to carry such emergency devices in their car or trunk. As such, there is clearly a need for a device that can be used to signal passing motorists of the vehicle/passengers on the side of the road that is more desirable for motorists to carry around in the trunk of a car.
The instant disclosure is designed to provide a multi-functional box stop device for the trunk of a car that addresses at least some of the above mentioned problems.